Addis Fortune (Addis Ababa)
Wudineh Zenebe
28 January 2008
The impact of condominium constructions has not yet been felt, private real estate offerings do not come within the majority's reach and all the while the city keeps growing. In a bid to alleviate housing shortages in Addis Abeba the just established Housing Development Corporation has come out with a bang. The monumental plans would erect multiple structures using precious city land more efficiently.
The newly established Housing Development Corporation (HDC) is to construct a series of skyscrapers of 30 storeys or more in a bid to curb the housing shortage in Addis Abeba. The design and construction of the structures is expected to be carried out by foreign companies.
This is the first move of the Corporation, established in January 18, 2008, by the Council of Ministers. It envisions investing billions of Birr to alleviate the shortage of housing in the metropolis.
The constructions are planned to be carried out in the central part of the city; dishing out extra plots from governmental agencies and demolishing huge villas owned by the former Rented Houses Agency (RHA).
Arkebe Oqubay, state minister of Works and Urban Development, told Fortune these types of construction plans are unprecedented in Ethiopia.
According to a Ministry of Works and Urban Development (MWUD) study, there is a one million house shortage in Ethiopia of which 400,000 are needed in Addis Abeba. The federal government, through the Ministry, has therefore launched a project in 2007 to construct 400,000 houses in 30 towns with a budget of 24 billion Br. These constructions are intended for the medium and lower income earners.
To undertake these massive projects there are 408 real estate companies which have requested 95.7 million square metres of land with a registered capital of 42.9 billion Br. However, only 100 have received land and half of them have started constructions.
Although, the government initially intended to address the housing demand of the lower strata of the population, real estate prices are unaffordable even to the middle income earners according to sector observers.
The average price tag these real estate developers offer for a single square metre in the capital is 10,000 Br. Officials at MWUD also agree that market prices have gone way beyond affordable levels.
A study the Ministry commissioned to address this problem recommended the establishment of the HDC following troubles the various agencies involved in housing have had in tackling housing problems, and has been endorsed by the Council of Ministers.
According to Arkebe, the construction envisioned by the Corporation has dual purposes.
"For one, it upgrades the capacity of the local construction sector from small scale construction to mega structures," Arkebe told Fortune. "It also helps to efficiently utilise the urban land."
Addis Abeba encompasses 54,000hct, of which 30,000hct has been used for various constructions. According to the master plan, the interior part of the city will be revamped with higher rising constructions. Vacant spots in the city are also intended for expansions.
According to a population expert, the growth of the population of Addis Abeba is so speedy that it would overtake all the expansion plots within 20 years.
"The construction of skyscraper apartments is therefore a wise way of tackling the trouble," he stated.
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